Missing in Action
by Aggy the Awesome
Summary: Batman is missing and it's up to Nightwing to find and rescue him. It's a race against the clock; will the former Boy Wonder get to him in time? Please review!
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own or take credit for Batman, Nightwing or any of the cannon characters involved. They belong to DC. This is a non-profit story.

Heart rate elevated, quickened footsteps, panting breaths...

...all were symptoms of being chased by the Dark Knight.

Clutching expensive jewelry in one hand and a very convincing toy gun in the other, Earl Simmons was running as fast as his out-of-shape body could take him. His boney knees throbbed with pain as he pushed himself to his limits, his muscles burned in every portion of his body and his mind raced with the possibilities of what was going to happen to him. Behind him, he could hear the whooshing of the Batman's cape, feel the piercing stare of the vigilante's eyes as they bore into his back. All the while, Earl could only wonder how he got himself into that mess.

It had just been a really bad day.

Putting aside the fact that his divorce papers had arrived in the mail that morning, he had not only lost his wife, but his job, custody of his kids and his apartment. In a matter of twenty-four hours, Earl had collapsed into himself and shriveled up into nothing, allowing himself to slowly slip into the depths of depression. Out of such desperation, a criminal had been born. Not a jeering lunatic like the Joker or a raging deformality like Clay Face, but a small time criminal. He was a man with no other options, one that was seeking to better his situation in the only way he saw left to do it - by stealing.

Unfortunately for the inexperienced criminal, Earl hadn't expected things to go so wrong so fast. A jewelry store stickup in the evening hours seemed like the perfect plan. It was near closing time, so there would be less customers around to witness. It was also just before nightfall, meaning the Batman wouldn't be around to stop him. As a normally law-abiding citizen, Earl never had anything to fear from the Dark Knight. However, as a criminal, Earl dreaded the moment he would have to face him and was counting on the fact that the day wouldn't come. Unfortunately for him, he had picked the wrong jewelry store.

Entering the shop like any normal client would have, Earl took in his surroundings to assess the situation. One other customer was finishing up his purchase - a man much larger and well built than Earl. He spoke to the owner casually and Earl would have sworn he heard the familiar name of Bruce Wayne being tossed around. He disregarded the conversation, though, and mentally prepared himself for what he was about to do. He took a deep breath, let it out, and then without anymore hesitation, he unleashed his inexperienced fury.

And now he was on the run. He had pulled out his fake gun, waved it around at the shopkeeper and the customer, making demands and trying to control his shaking hands. He had managed to get a few diamond necklaces and rings before deciding that enough was enough and took off on a hard run out of the shop and down the street. He had done it! The jewels were in his coat pocket and he was halfway down the street with no sign of a tail. Panting from fear and adrenaline, Earl turned sharply into an alley and hid behind a dumpster to catch his breath.

It was quiet save for the sound of his breath. He didn't move from his position for the longest time, trying to figure out if he felt safe enough to leave the alley. He hadn't seen anyone following him, so that gave him hope. Hope that he probably shouldn't have had - not yet, anyway. He even allowed himself to chuckle with relief, his thoughts on how easy it had been.

A resounding WHOOSH startled Earl and his eyes opened wide, immediately looking up to find the source of the noise. His heart began to pound in his chest, even when he didn't see anything. He immediately stood up fast and started running again, knowing what that sound could mean and not wanting to stick around to find out exactly what it was. Gritting his teeth together, he burst out of the alley and into the street. It was Batman. Earl had no doubt about it. Batman was after him and Earl knew he was no match against the Dark Knight. He hadn't planned for this; hell, he hadn't planned for a lot of things, but he had been positive that his timing had been good. It was evening and Batman didn't come out until darkness had fallen. So why was Earl suddenly so frightened?

Another sound of wind rushing by above his head sent Earl in a frenzy of panic. Fearful whimpers escaped him as he ran, his eyes darting everywhere for any kind of escape. Crime Alley had all sorts of old abandoned buildings that one could get lost in, and Earl took the first one that caught his eye. He turned fast, running up the stairs to the old church and burst through the front doors. They were weak, giving in easily because of their age. Dust flew up in all directions and the sound echoed in the desolate auditorium.

The place looked like it had been through hell. No doubt, it had been used many times by lowlifes of society. Pews were missing completely or otherwise overturned and destroyed. Columns and beams that held the church in place were missing chunks out of the wood, already looking unsteady. It was a recipe for bad news and Earl began to second-guess his choice. Hiding from the Batman was near impossible; he had probably seen Earl go into the building. What was the point? He would have probably been better off turning himself in.

A loud thump on the roof drew Earl's attention upward. Sawdust fell from the ceiling where something heavy weighted it down. Earl gasped and dove between two benches, trying his hardest to conceal himself even though he knew it was useless. The sound that followed soon after came as a surprise even though Earl was expecting it. A loud crack came before a crash and Earl found himself peeking out just in time to see the Batman falling through the roof with debris surrounding him. It looked like a controlled fall, one that Batman seemed to land just find amongst the rubble that had fallen with him.

"Give it up! I know you're in here." The Batman's voice was firm, authoritative. Earl was frightened. His body shook violently, his mind raced in every which direction. He wanted to give himself up. He wanted all of this to end, but he didn't want to go to jail. He wasn't strong enough for jail.

"Okay!" Earl shouted desperately, clinging on the fact that the Batman wouldn't beat him to a bloody pulp if he cooperated. "I-I give up! P-please don't b-be mad!" Earl stood up, displaying his hands in surrender for the Batman to see. His head was lowered and he couldn't seem to meet the Dark Knights cold eyes. "I-I'm sorry! I'll give 'em back!" The Batman stared him down. His eyes bore into Earl with a menacing calm that scared him more than anything. His heart pounded, his hands shook. A brief silence past between the two before a cracking sound broke it.

Earl's eyes followed the noise up toward the ceiling where a piece of the roof was crumbling and beginning to fall a part. It happened so fast that Earl didn't - couldn't - react. His feet remained planted and his eyes were fixed on the large beam followed by debris from the roof came tumbling down toward him. He was hit...but not by the pieces of the roof. Something hard knocked into the side of Earl's body and sent him flying backwards. The debris missed him by a hair's width and he scrambled to his hands and knees, coughing and clearing his eyes of the dust to see what happened.

A large pile of rubble, dominated by a heavy beam from the roof lay dormant on the floor now. The Batman was nowhere in sight, but somehow Earl knew that he wasn't gone. Silence filled the auditorium as the dust cleared. Earl stood up on his own two feet and staggered over toward the pile. His heart was still beating fast and his breaths still escaped in heaves. Only now it wasn't just fear that gripped him, but concern as well.

Earl circled the pile and stopped halfway when he finally found what he was looking for. The Batman was pinned down by the beam, trapped in the pile of rubble. From the look of it, consciousness had escaped the Dark Knight. He didn't move. Slowly and carefully, Early moved closer, reaching his shakey hands out to place on the beam. He tried lifting it himself, but it didn't budge. He tried again. Nothing.

He stopped and looked around the church before his eyes fell back on the trapped Batman. "S-sorry..." he said regretfully before turning and rushing out of the church. The old doors slammed shut behind him, echoing before silence returned to the abandoned building.

Batman remained still, unconscious and unable to move from the weight that held him down.


	2. Chapter 2

High rooftop? Check.

Perfect view? Check.

Comfortable position? Check.

Peaceful night in Bludhaven where all of the criminals in the city decided to take the night off? No such luck.

Nightwing had just settled onto a rooftop and prepared for a night of quiet observation. The cold winter air had lingered in Bludhaven, covering it in a light layer of snow that had most average people clinging to blankets in their own cozy homes. Next to a warm fire. Watching the Late Show. However, Nightwing was far from a normal person which was why he was standing out in the cold and not sipping hot cocoa on his couch. He was hoping, in vain, that the lowlifes of the city had more sense than him at that moment; he hoped that they had decided to stay indoors for the night, keeping warm and planning on committing their crimes at a warmer temperature. Only then, when Nightwing was sure he wouldn't be desperately needed, would he even consider going home himself.

Unfortunately for him, there was no rest for the wicked.

A shrill scream tore Nightwing's attention to the north. His mind was already calculating the distance while his eyes pierced the darkness to scale the area. It took him less than two seconds to assess the route he would take and what kind of tricks he would perform to get there.

"Well, at least this will warm me up," he said to himself before taking off at a run across the roof. When he reached the edge, he sprang off of the side. He soared across the gap between the buildings and landed on the next roof gracefully. There was no hesitation between his feet touching the roof and then taking off again at a run; his moves were fast and fluid, like rushing water. He jumped across two more gaps and landed each one perfectly, following the sound of a now muffled scream along with voices mocking and laughing.

The closer he got, the clearer the noise was to make out. There were several distinct male voices - Nightwing counted five - and then the high-pitched pleas from a woman whose voice matched the scream. Nightwing stole a peek over the edge and into an alley where he saw that five men were holding a young woman hostage. Already, part of her shirt was torn in several places, revealing her bra underneath. The largest of the men had his arms wrapped around her waist, holding her against his body as she struggled to get free. The others taunted her from all sides, taking their sweet time since they believed no one would be rescuing her. The streets were empty and most people had already locked themselves in their homes for the night.

Luckily for the girl, help was there; he was just picking the right moment to strike.

"Don't worry, baby, it won't hurt THAT bad," said one as he moved in closer, reaching out to touch the woman inappropriately. She begged him to stop while the others chuckled and waited their turn.

"I believe the lady said no," Nightwing projected his voice into the alley, watching as all eyes suddenly shot up toward the rooftops and searched frantically for the source. A smirk appeared on Nightwing's face at the looks of confusion and sudden panic in all of their eyes. That's when he decided to make a move.

Swinging down on one of the many ropes he possessed, he brought his legs up high to strike the criminal on the edge of the group. Slamming his feet into the man's left side, Nightwing sent him flying into the alley wall before dropping from his rope and landing nicely on both feet.

"Kill him!" Nightwing didn't get a chance to see who shouted the words before several clicking noises told him that the small gang of criminals had a few guns and were about to fire. As soon as the bullets were released, Nightwing was turning flips into the air and using the building walls to spring off of and dodge the gunfire. As he moved, he drew one of his batarangs and threw it at the three armed men, watching as it knocked the guns out of their hands one at a time. Cries of pain were uttered as they pulled their hands back to nurse, but Nightwing was already moving in to finish them off.

As he approached them again, head on, Nightwing's radio transmitter in his mask started going off and he reached up and answered it. "I'm a little busy right now, pretty lady," he said as he ducked beneath a punch before sending one of his own into the man's ribs. The large one that had been holding the girl threw her on the ground to help his three remaining comrades surround Nightwing. He let it happen for the sake of allowing them believe that they had the upper hand; it made kicking their asses all the sweeter when he saw their defeated faces. These guys were small game, lowlife gang-bangers that posed no real threat to Nightwing at all. He would have fun humiliating them after all that they had probably already done to others.

"Was that sarcasm? 'Cause this is really important," Oracle's voice responded and Nightwing could hear the serious tone in it. Normally she came back with a witty remark or some cute pet name for him, but this time she was very forward with her words.

"Yeah, go on, what's up?" As he spoke, he dodged punches, delivered his own and overall just had no problem keeping up with the four men surrounding him.

Oracle got straight to the point. "Batman is missing."

Her words were enough to make Nightwing freeze for a moment, his eyebrows quirking up in a confused expression. That moment of distraction earned him a straight shot in the cheek, throwing him off balance. He allowed himself to fall into a back handspring, putting some distance between him and the gang-bangers. Once back on his feet, Nightwing tilted his head to both sides, popping his neck. "Wanna say that again?" He continued his conversation with Oracle as he prepared himself to strike again.

"He hasn't been home, there hasn't been any radio contact...and the Batmobile hasn't left the Batcave. He hasn't talked to anyone." The more she spoke, the more Nightwing noticed the distress in her voice.

"Wait, wait, wait," Nightwing said as he dodged a blow meant for his stomach and elbowed the largest of the men in the nose. "Is Batman missing or is-" Nightwing heard the man that he had kicked into the wall coming up behind him, so he immediately sent a back-handed punch right into the guy's face without even looking.

Fortunately, the Oracle got what he was saying. "We're not sure. The Lamburgini and one of the costumes is gone, so he could be either one..."

"How long?" Nightwing sent a kick into another man, knocking the guy's breath out of him before punching him in the face and sending him to the ground.

"Since around six o'clock last night."

"Hold on a sec," Nightwing said fast, planning to finish the small gang off so he could concentrate better on the conversation. After a series of punches, kicks and dodges, the criminals were all on the ground groaning and moaning from pain. "Now what's the lesson we learned today, boys? When a lady says no, it means no. It doesn't mean, "Hey go ahead and do it now." Understand?" Nightwing went to work binding all of the mens' feet and hands and dragging them to a corner until the police arrived. He pretended to dust of his hands as he made his way over to the girl who was curled up in a fetal position on the ground, shaking. Nightwing offered a hand which she accepted and he helped her to her feet. "And the lesson for you, ma'am is not to walk around alone after dark, alright?"

Nodding, the girl replied shakily, "Th-thank y-you."

"Now go on home, I'll make sure you make it back safely." Without another word, Nightwing shot his grappler to the roof and waited for it to hook on before pulling himself up. The girl stared after him with wide and watery eyes before rushing out of the alley and down the street. Her pace was swift, but Nightwing was able to keep up with her on rooftops until she made it home a few buildings down. Stopping on a roof and taking up a sitting position in the corner, Nightwing continued his conversation with Oracle. "Alright Babs, so he's been missing a little over a day. You sure Bruce isn't just being...Bruce?"

"Positive, Dick. He would have at least contacted one of us by now. You know that." She sounded tired by then, as if she had been up all night searching for him herself.

Sighing, Nightwing nodded to himself before leaning his head against the wall and looking up toward the night sky. "I'll be there in a few hours."

Oracle's tone seemed to brighten up just slightly at the statement. "I'll let Alfred know you're coming."

"No, that's okay, I'll call him myself. Any chance I can hit you up for a date when I come in town?"

"No chance. How can you joke at a time like this?"

"...who said I was joking?" Nightwing smiled before telling her goodbye and turning off the transmitter. He took a moment to himself, gathering his thoughts while he sat in the corner. Who was it this time? Two-Face? The Joker? Who could have possibly gotten Batman and been able to hold him for that long? Concern for his mentor was slowly beginning to creep up on him, causing him to finally stir and get up from where he was so that he could be on his way home.

It didn't take him long to get back to his tenement house, swinging through the window of his room and immediately beginning to strip off his costume, becoming Dick Grayson again. He was quick to change into a casual outfit - just blue jeans and a loose white t-shirt - before grabbing a small bag and stuffing his costume, gadgets and extra clothes inside. He wasn't sure how long he would be gone, but he was sure Alfred kept some spare clothes for him at the Manor; packing light was acceptable. He was ready to go in less than ten minutes, moving toward the door and reaching for the handle just as loud knocking made him jump in surprise.

"Mr. Grayson? It's Clancy!" The Irish accent of his landlord came muffled from the other side, drawing a smirk from Dick. He answered his door with an innocent expression on his face, playing the part of a naive tenant like he always ended up doing.

"Huh? Oh hey Clance! I was just leaving," he said as he stepped out and locked the door behind him, turning to talk to her face-to-face. "Is there something you need?"

"Oh...well I was hopin' ta catch ya for a movie night, bu' I guess I was too late," she replied, seemingly a little disappointed. Dick hated doing that to her. She always seemed to want to spend time with him, and all he ever had time for was running around the city at night catching criminals. One of those days, they would be able to go through a "date" without being interrupted.

"Yeah, sorry Clancy. Maybe next time?" Dick wasn't sure why he even bothered to add the last part; chances were that there wasn't going to be a "next time" whether he wanted there to be or not. The look on her face told him that she believed the same thing.

"A'right, Mr. Grayson, I'll be sure ta hold ya to tha'," she said with a smirk turning up the corners of her lips and as she strategically placed her hands on her hips. Dick knew that stance; she meant it. If he didn't follow through with it, she would have his head. She could be a vicious little Asian-Irish woman when she wanted to be. Her wrath was only rivaled by that of Barbara's. He didn't want to be on her bad side.

"Sure thing, Clance," Dick said cheerily, smiling and waving as he walked by with his bag slung over his shoulder. He left the building casually before speeding up his pace to get to his motorcycle parked beside it. He was on it and speeding off before long, traveling through the streets and dodging cars on the way to Gotham. He was barely five minutes away from his tenement house when he pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and speed-dialed the Manor's phone number.

It took a few rings, but Alfred finally picked up the phone. "Wayne Manor, Mr. Wayne is not in right now, but I'll be glad to take a message for y-"

"Al, is that how you greet family?" Dick interrupted, unable to keep from smiling. It had been a while since he had seen Alfred in person, so that was something he would look forward to. Otherwise, he was still feeling the heat of having to find Batman. Or Bruce, depending on who he was when he went "missing." At that point, Dick wasn't sure who he was hoping was the one captured; if it was Batman, that meant that it had to be one of the many sadistic villains. And with him missing for so long, then it was hard to imagine what kind of horrible things were being done to him. On the other hand, if it was Bruce, then perhaps someone was just holding him hostage for money. Wouldn't they have heard demands by then, though?

"Master Richard! It's good to hear your voice, sir. Miss Gordan informed me that you would be coming." Eyes widening for a moment, Dick had to chuckle a little to himself. Of course Babs had gone ahead and told Alfred anyway, even after Dick had said he could handle it.

"Yeah, I'm actually on my way right now, Al. Should be there in a few-"

"Are you driving while on your cell phone, sir?" Even over the phone, Dick could pick up the signs of disapproval in the butler's voice.

"...of course not, Al. I wouldn't dare." Unfortunately, the revving of his engine and the sound of rushing wind completely overpowered that lie. Dick knew it wouldn't have worked on the old man anyway, but it was always fun to joke around with him - even if he wasn't joking back. "I'll get all of the details from you when I get there, but see if you can find out anything."

"Right, sir. I'll have everything ready for you upon your arrival. Planning on staying long?"

"I'm hoping I won't have to, Al. See ya soon." With that, Dick hung up the phone and sped off into the night. 


	3. Chapter 3

A quiet groan escaped Batman as he stirred awake from under the pile of rubble. His eyes opened slowly, remaining half closed as his mind took a moment to comprehend that it was waking up. After a brief moment of silent contemplation and assessment of what was going on, Batman knew exactly where he stood - or in his case, lay.

His body was in pain. That was the first thing that registered in his mind; he felt a few ribs cracked, one or two even broken. He was getting a sharp pain in his left hamstring, the feeling as if something was jabbing him from underneath, so he knew that he must have been laying on something sharp. Other than that, the bruising on his body was immense, for he could feel the tenderness of his skin underneath the debris. He'd be sore for a while. That was assuming he would even get out of his predicament alive.

His current situation was a difficult one. Already, he had tried to move, but the debris held him in place. His arms were pinned underneath a beam and several attempts to pull them free proved to be useless. He couldn't even send off a distress signal to Alfred or Oracle, for he couldn't get to his transmitter. Help wouldn't be coming, and from the look of how empty the church was, nobody was going to be passing by on a stroll.

Sighing and laying his head back, Batman stared up through the hole in the ceiling at the night sky. How much time had gone by since he blacked out? Was it the same night? Judging by the raging hunger and thirst he was feeling, his first guess would have been that at least twenty-four hours had gone by since he went unconscious. The sharp pain in his head suggested that a blow to it had been what knocked him out, and the stickiness on the side of his face had to have been dry blood from the previous day. At least he was thinking clearly; that meant that no damage had been done permanently. To him, it was just a scratch and it was the least of his problems.

Batman grunted quietly, knowing that his situation was bad. In pain, unable to move and help nowhere nearby had him counting the days that he could make it without food and water. The average person could go several days without water and even more without food, but Batman was no normal man; he could probably stretch it a little bit longer by sheer willpower, but his body could only take so much. He was going to need a miracle.

"I just don't get it, Al," Dick said for the third time, standing in front of the large bat computer and staring at the screen as if it were some foreign object. The screen was covered with several different files on random criminals that were in no way related to each other on any level. Their profiles were displayed, complete with a picture and basic information like their names, ages and crimes committed. Staring at them gave Dick no further insight to Batman's whereabouts. "Are you sure these were the people he was investigating?"

"Yes, Master Dick. He was actually just starting to build a case on them, but then this happened," Alfred replied, looking over the profiles themselves before returning his eyes to Dick. "Perhaps they realized early on that he was snooping?"

"If these guys noticed anything, it had to have been punching them in the face. None of them seem organized enough to pull off a successful heist, so I doubt capturing the Batman was even on their minds. Nah, whoever did it knows what they are doing." Crossing his arms over his chest, Dick tapped his chin lightly with his index finger and continued to look over the screen. "Hey Babs, can you pull up any recently released Arkham patients? No more than a a few months back."

"As you wish, Man Wonder," Oracle's voice came from the speakers on the computer and the small image of her in the corner of the screen moved as she typed away at her own computer. "Only one was released on probation, but several others have escaped recently from what I heard on the news. Give me a sec."

"Please tell me they're small fries. I'm in no mood to deal with the Joker or any of the other major nutjobs," Dick mentioned. He also didn't want to have to call in backup for the sake of dealing with one of the big wigs; sometimes it was best to be more safe than sorry, especially when handling some of the maniacs that they dealt with.

"Well, I can tell ya it's not the Joker," Oracle finally answered after what seemed like minutes. Dick perked up, his eyes returning to the screen as the former Batgirl sent the information to the bat computer, showing who was out. Dick's expression remained serious as his eyes crossed over several familiar faces. Two-Face, Penguin and Bane were the three that stood out the most. "Go ahead and wipe Penguin off of your list. He's in Europe on "business." Has been for two weeks."

"So that leaves Bane and Two-Face. Lucky me."

"Bane is the most recent escapee, but that was a week ago. Two-Face has been out for three."

"Both of them have had plenty of time to come up with something for Batman," Dick added matter-of-factly as he glanced at Alfred. "Guess I'll start with those two."

"Are you sure you can handle this, Master Dick? Bane and Two-Face are..." Alfred hesitated for a moment, trying to think of the right words. He didn't even have to finish; Dick knew exactly what he meant. They were extremely dangerous and the old man was actually expressing his concern. Dick smiled just slightly.

"I know, Al. I'll be careful," he said as he brought his hand down on the old man's back lightly. Alfred was always good at playing the part of stoic butler when he needed to be, but now his surrogate son was missing without a trace and two of Batman's most notorious villains were loose. Bane had already broken Batman's back once and Two-Face had done his share of damage over the years as well. Dick was not thrilled about dealing with either one.

"Okay, so I get that you two are having a moment and it's beautiful by the way," Oracle's voice cut-in. "But do I need to remind you both that Bruce is still out there?"

Dick didn't even hesitate. "Oracle, find out where Two-Face and Bane could be and have all of the information ready by the time I come back down." Dick patted Alfed's back a few times before moving toward the Grandfather Clock entrance to the batcave. "I won't be long."

"Sure thing, Former Boy Wonder," Oracle replied and began to type away at her computer.

Upstairs, Dick was in Bruce's study going through all sorts of documents and receipts, trying to figure out if there was anything going on at Wayne Enterprises that would have made him enemies. Unfortunately most of the business and finances were taken care of by Lucius Fox, so the possibilities of paper trails would be limited at the Manor. If he wanted anymore information, he would have to go straight to the source. Sighing, Dick plopped down in the large chair behind Bruce's desk and ran his fingers through his long black hair.

"I've already talked to Lucius and he says that Master Wayne hasn't made any major decisions regarding Wayne Enterprises of late," Alfred's voice seemed to come out of nowhere, drawing a weary glance from Dick. He was already losing nightfall and still had no leads save for the possibility of two maniac criminals on the loose. However, that was hardly a lead. In fact, that was the story of Gotham City almost every night; criminals reeking havoc in the streets causing chaos - it was a mess. "I think it's safe to assume that he is Batman out there."

"I figured that too. If someone had Bruce, I think they would have made it known by now," Dick mentioned, eyes still pouring over all of the papers on the desk as if the answer would pop up right in front of him. "You said he took the Lamborghini out?"

"Yes, sir," Alfred mentioned, eyes quirking up in interest. He knew where Dick was going with that.

"Track it, I'll start there. Though...I'm sure if Bruce left it behind, it's probably nowhere near where it was, especially after a day." Dick mentioned. If he was lucky, it was still in the last place Bruce left it, but Dick had a feeling it wasn't going to be that easy. Gotham was too corrupt a place for a car like that to stay idle for too long.

"I'll set up the signal for the homing device on your motorcycle. I'm assuming that is what you're taking tonight?"

"Yeah, what'd you expect? The Batmobile? Not my style." A smile crept onto Dick's face as he stood up and moved toward the only bag he had brought with him. He stole a glance at Alfred and noticed the old man's tired features. There was a hint of dark circles forming below his eyes and he was also actually looking his age for the first time in years. The worry and stress from Bruce going missing was beginning to take its toll on him and it had only been one day. "I'll find him, Al. Don't worry."

"Be careful out there, Master Richard," Alfred replied, and Dick caught the silent implication of, 'I don't want to lose you too.' Nodding, Dick pulled his Nightwing costume out of the bag as he made his way back into the batcave. Oracle was still up on the screen typing away diligently while he slipped into his costume and put on his mask.

"Oooh don't tease me, Man Wonder," Oracle said, the sounds of her typing still evident. She hadn't even looked up from her own screen.

Dick couldn't contain a smile. "You know you miss it." As he spoke, he made his way to his motorcycle, ready to head out in search of his mentor.

"I'll send the information to your computer while you're out. Be careful out there, Dick."

"Always, Babs." Dick slipped on his helmet and revved up his motorcycle before speeding out of the cave.


End file.
